The quality of every element in this bike impresses , from the footpegs up , it is clear why Honda ’ s demand such high resale value and low second-hand turnover . They ’ ve earned their place at the top . So far so good . The riding position is as you ’ d expect in a LAMS machine , with raised bars elevating the rider view . The bars themselves are a little narrower and add to the collected nature of the bike ’ s feel . Pegs are higher , but not uncomfortably so , and the sports bike feel is real . Great seat too at 810mm high , with a good pillion area , not too elevated , and the rear is narrow and clean with a factory tail tidy . There are two choices for colour , matte gunpowder black , and candy chromosphere red ( it ’ s a Honda of course it should be red ).
THE ENGINE The inline double overhead camshaft , four cylinder engine is sweet as , even in this form delivering 48 restricted horses and that ’ s plenty for any bike in a LAMS config , however there is more good news , well sort of . While it is possible to have the bike reconfigured out of LAMS , there ’ s quite a bit you have to do , to make it legal , not least of which is deregister it as a LAMS bike and reregister it as a full motorcycle . I don ’ t know how difficult this is but it sounds a bit tiresome and probably pricey . But if you decided it was worth it to own a familiar and newly snotty bit of kit , with upgrades and pipe etc , you could get it close to delivering the full 94 horses . Oh hell yes .
CHASSIS Suspension is by Japanese experts Showa , with 41mm separate function front forks , and a prolink single shock absorber rear with adjustable preload . My preload setting was reasonable for round town comfort but I ’ d certainly notch it up two or three for quicker use . On the ground , 17-inch wheels , with very clean and smart mags in that dark bronze colour , add a real snap of sophistication to the overall look . Tyres are 180 / 55 at the rear and 120 / 70 up front . Good Dunlop Sportmax Roadsport 2 rubber feet with lovely smooth geometry on the front for great drop in .
Stopping is by Nissin with two hefty fourpiston calipers on twin 310 mm discs up front . They are progressive and powerful without being particularly distinctive , a 240mm rear disc is there to make the cut , and braking is perfectly adequate for the bike weight of 209kg . I spent several days on this bike , always a trifle nervous with my damaged left hip , but once tucked in and buttoned up I enjoyed every moment of my rides . The bike is smooth as silk as you ’ d expect from an inlinefour , and although I noticed the reticence of the LAMS configuration when twisting the throttle in earnest , it moved swiftly into license threatening territory with ease .
ELECTRONICS Electronics-wise I really enjoyed the ease and simplicity of navigating the menus in the 5-in colour TFT display . Much simpler to use than the one I ’ m used to , everything from dashboard layout to service intervals , fuel
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